CSA1 Help!

mancgirl99

My husband is on CSA 1 for his 2 children. He has always paid on time and willingly but his ex wife is constantly asking for more money for things that 'crop up'. His last reassessment was in 2008 and his salary has not increased much since then. However, the mortgage is now double what it was at his assessment and he is now with me (he was single at the time). I am currently unemployed (desperately seeking work!) so things are very tight. When the original claim was made around 2000 his ex wife was also single (I believe her income is taken into account?). She's now married to a man who has a huge salary (double my husband's).

Can someone please help answer the following questions:

1. Are we obliged to give her more money when she asks?

2. If my husband was reassessed, would our higher mortgage payment be taken into account?

3. How would him now being married and me being currently unemployed affect a reassessment?

4. Does his ex's income (including her new husband's) have to be declared during the reassessment process?

5. Does anyone have any idea exactly how CSA1 is calculated?

Many thanks for any help!

DUTR

mancgirl99 wrote: »

My husband is on CSA 1 for his 2 children. He has always paid on time and willingly but his ex wife is constantly asking for more money for things that 'crop up'. His last reassessment was in 2008 and his salary has not increased much since then. However, the mortgage is now double what it was at his assessment and he is now with me (he was single at the time). I am currently unemployed (desperately seeking work!) so things are very tight. When the original claim was made around 2000 his ex wife was also single (I believe her income is taken into account?). She's now married to a man who has a huge salary (double my husband's).

Can someone please help answer the following questions:

1. Are we obliged to give her more money when she asks?

2. If my husband was reassessed, would our higher mortgage payment be taken into account?

3. How would him now being married and me being currently unemployed affect a reassessment?

4. Does his ex's income (including her new husband's) have to be declared during the reassessment process?

5. Does anyone have any idea exactly how CSA1 is calculated?

Many thanks for any help!

1) You are obliged to to contribute the assessed amount.

2) Once re-assesed a new schedule will be calculated (the contribution can go down as well as up)

4) The questions asked are on the MEF

5) There is some idea in another thread which was posted recently.

mancgirl99

Thank you DUTR.

Can I ask what MEF is? (excuse my ignorance!)

We're wondering if we should be reassessed so that it's up to date and the ex doesn't have as much scope to keep asking for additional money on top of the CSA calculated amount. We just want to know what could be in store for us! We don't mind paying a bit more via CSA if it stops the constant begging letters we get! It causes a massive strain on us as she doesn't like being told no and guilt trips my husband even though he's always paid fairly and squarely.

Thanks again for you reply. Will have a look for the recent post about how it's calculated

Blackpool_Saver

BEGGING LETTERS ????????


Do you mean letters requesting further financial assistance.... ?

DUTR

mancgirl99 wrote: »

Thank you DUTR.

Can I ask what MEF is? (excuse my ignorance!)

We're wondering if we should be reassessed so that it's up to date and the ex doesn't have as much scope to keep asking for additional money on top of the CSA calculated amount. We just want to know what could be in store for us! We don't mind paying a bit more via CSA if it stops the constant begging letters we get! It causes a massive strain on us as she doesn't like being told no and guilt trips my husband even though he's always paid fairly and squarely.

Thanks again for you reply. Will have a look for the recent post about how it's calculated

MEF is Maintainance Enquiry Form

See Post #27 in this thread for a near way of how CSA1 is calculated.

mancgirl99

Blackpool_Saver wrote: »

BEGGING LETTERS ????????


Do you mean letters requesting further financial assistance.... ?

We get notes passed to us through the kids when she's bought them something and then tells us she couldn't afford it and demands we pay half. One occasion last year my step son needed a suit for sixth form. She went out and bought him one for £300 from a designer shop then demanded we pay half. Had we been involved in the suit buying it'd have been one from a high street store at a third of that cost as that would have been in our budget. The letters she then sends tell us she couldn't afford to spend that money which is why she wants more.

We get this all the time - her expecting us to pay more when she's spent more than she says she can afford when there's clearly a cheaper, more affordable alternative.

Marisco

mancgirl99 wrote: »

We get notes passed to us through the kids when she's bought them something and then tells us she couldn't afford it and demands we pay half. One occasion last year my step son needed a suit for sixth form. She went out and bought him one for £300 from a designer shop then demanded we pay half. Had we been involved in the suit buying it'd have been one from a high street store at a third of that cost as that would have been in our budget. The letters she then sends tell us she couldn't afford to spend that money which is why she wants more.

We get this all the time - her expecting us to pay more when she's spent more than she says she can afford when there's clearly a cheaper, more affordable alternative.

Do what we did with oh's ex - ignore it! So long as you are paying what CSA has said, then it is up to you what extras you spend above and beyond the assessment, nowt to do with her. It was hell admittedly, when the kids were younger, as she played the blackmail card, but thankfully kids get older, so if you can "ride the storm" for a few years, you're home and dry. Good luck, I know what hell a bitter ex can put you through

DUTR

Marisco wrote: »

Do what we did with oh's ex - ignore it! So long as you are paying what CSA has said, then it is up to you what extras you spend above and beyond the assessment, nowt to do with her. It was hell admittedly, when the kids were younger, as she played the blackmail card, but thankfully kids get older, so if you can "ride the storm" for a few years, you're home and dry. Good luck, I know what hell a bitter ex can put you through

My daughter's Mum was back in touch just after xmas, all nice as pie (I even thought if she was like this in the beginning then things may have turned out differently)
However I kept my guard up, so never done the 60 mile round trip and meetings were half way, then after a time dropping of hints "your daughter needs a new PC etc, would I like to contribute?"
Obvious answer was No! I pay my csa contribution, over the months of finally realising I was not contributing anymore than mandotary, she has turned and I don't hear from her anymore :cool:

CakeCrusader

You do know the CSA assessment is the minimum that should be paid, right? It's not going to cover additional items, such as computers or school trips so it's only fair that the NRP should offer a contribution towards these costs providing they are reasonable! Designer clothes are not reasonable, a pc for school work is as something like this won't be covered under the CSA assessment. It's your child too, after all.

DUTR

CakeCrusader wrote: »

You do know the CSA assessment is the minimum that should be paid, right? It's not going to cover additional items, such as computers or school trips so it's only fair that the NRP should offer a contribution towards these costs providing they are reasonable! Designer clothes are not reasonable, a pc for school work is as something like this won't be covered under the CSA assessment. It's your child too, after all.

Yes I do, perhaps you may wish to contribute the difference then?
15% is reasonable and that is what I contribute, perhaps you missed the post where the current contribution stables a horse, so it's about priorities, not the NRP picking up the tabs for the irresponses of the PWC. :cool:

Cally_Smart

Yes ,it is the minimum that should be paid according the CSA rules.As it is linked to income and not a set mimimum amount it would be nice to have some left to spend on the Qualifying Child ourselves !!